13 hours later.
It was already nightfall at LA's largest hospital, yet Ha Rin was still in her bed.
"Here's your supper," Hannah said as she entered Ha Rin's room, but she quickly noticed that Ha Rin was asleep.
"Are you asleep?" Hannah quietly whispered into Ha Rin's ear as she placed the food tray on a nearby table.
"No." Surprisingly Ha Rin responded.
"What's wrong?" Hannah questioned as she sat beside Ha Rin.
Ha Rin seemed gloomy as she was lying on her side, refusing to face Hannah.
"Where's Nanny?" After a moment, Ha Rin finally asked as she turned round.
It was then Hannah saw her face. Her cheeks were covered with tears, and her nose was running. "She's not going to leave me, too, right?"
'Too...' Hannah thought as she patted Ha Rin's head.
"I'm sure everything is fine," Hannah comforted, but inside, she was also beginning to worry. She had been trying to contact Ha Rin's Nanny for quite some time now, but there was no telling when she would pick up.
Vermmmmm...
Suddenly, the floor began to vibrate, causing Ha Rin to jolt upright.
She turned over to Hannah with a flustered expression. This was her first time expressing something like this, so she simply thought that it was an earthquake.
I don't know..." Hannah replied in confusion. It didn't feel like an earthquake to her, only small micro-vibrations. "But everything is going to be-"
A shocking sight cut off Hannah.
The bustling city streets were a hive of activity, with people going about their daily routines, completely unaware of the impending disaster. Suddenly, there was a deafening roar as a plane hurtled out of the sky, heading straight toward a towering skyscraper.
Panic ensued as people ran for cover, their screams mingling with the sounds of screeching metal and shattering glass. The impact was immense, as the plane slammed into the building, causing a massive explosion that sent shockwaves through the city.
Flames leaped out of the shattered windows, and smoke billowed into the sky, blackening the once-clear blue. The scene was one of utter chaos, with debris raining down from the sky and the screams of the injured and dying filling the air. The once-imposing building was now a twisted, smoking wreck.
Hannah and Ha Rin watched as everything unfolded. Their pupils were shaking, unable to process what had just happened.
The hospital Hannah and Ha Rin were staying at was about one mile away from Wilshire grand center. But they were able to feel the full force of the crash.
Both stared at the burning building with fear and shock.
"A-ahhhh..." Ha Rin's voice began to break down.
When Hannah saw this, she rushed to hug Ha Rin. 'To think such a fragile soul has to see this.'
"It's going to be fine...it's going to be fine," Hannah repeated to calm Ha Rin.
Noticing Hannah's calm composure, Ha Rin forced herself to stop crying.
"That's good." Hannah said, "Now we have to get out of here first."
"Un." Ha Rin nodded.
"Alright, let's go," Hannah spoke as she picked up Ha Rin. Hannah then placed Ha Rin in her arms.
Outside the door was pure pandemonium. The doctors and nurses were helping everyone evacuate the building.
"Huh? Hannah, you were still in there?" One of Hannah's colleagues voiced in a hurry. His breath was nearly all gone.
"There you are, John," Hannah spoke, then asked. "Where are the other kids?"
"Right now, everyone's being evacuated out of the building. You also need to get the hell out of here."
"What about you?"
"I'll come down with you."
Alright.
Hannah nodded and rushed for the elevator. John also closed and followed Hannah.
Kaboom!
It was and secondary explosion caused by the plane crash.
"Ah!" Ha Rin yelped and dug her face into Hannah's shoulder. She even covered her small ears, afraid another explosion would go off.
"The stairs are a better choice," Hannah said and changed her course to the stairwell. She concluded that the elevator would take a long time to come up and down. Besides, she needed to leave the elevator for those with mobility restrictions.
Slam!
Hannah opened the stairwell door when there were on the ground floor.
It wasn't easy for someone to move down eight floors with a toddler in their hands.
"What's going on?" John asked upon noticing the big crowd by the main entrance.
Doctors, nurses, patients. Everyone from the hospital was gathered in this one spot, but thankfully there seemed to be offices here to lead everyone out in an orderly-fashioned manner.
"See, I told you everything was going to be fine." Hannah smiled to ease Ha Rin.
"Move away from all buildings! Do not go near them!" The officers shouted at the people rushing out of the hospital.
Hannah and John stuck right beside everyone else as they were evacuated from the hospital.
Once out, they were confronted with uproar and mayhem.
Beep! Beep! Honk!
Cars, trucks, and vans all stood idle as everyone stopped and gaped at the burning skyscraper above them.
Hannah also tilted her head up to see the severity of the situation. Her eyes wavered when she saw the scene. It was also the same for John and Ha Rin. Everyone simply couldn't believe it.
The dark blue sky was slowly beginning to be devoured by the black smoke that rose from Wilshire grand center.
Ahhhhh!
Screams began coming from where Wilshire grand center was. It caused everyone to revert their attention to the screams.
The blood-wrenching screams continued without any sign of stopping.
Ha Rin, who heard this, cowered back in terror.
It was then Hannah began to see it. Far into the distance, about 1300 meters away, a giant crowd was seen tumbling over each other to get further ahead.
But this crowd didn't look... human.
They ran, but when one fell, the rest didn't care. They stepped forward, trampling on the fallen. The ones that fell had their arms, legs, and bodies crushed, but they got up without any regard any pain. Their eyes were blurred as if they had gone blind, but their face only had frenzy.
Everyone within the vicinity had the same thoughts going through their heads.
Zombies!